10 Two Five One Licks Every Jazz Guitarist Should Know

10 Essential II-V-I Licks for Jazz Guitar Learning Vocabulary from the Masters of Jazz Guitar

By: Matthew Warnock www.mattwarnockguitar.com

©2011 Matthew Warnock www.mattwarnockguitar.com

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Thanks for subscribing to my newsletter, I’m glad to have you on board! As a special gift to my subscribers, I’ve brought together 10 major ii-V-I licks that I have studied over the years for you to enjoy. Each line comes from a real playing situation by the masters of jazz guitar. Below you will find lines by:          

Django Reinhardt Charlie Christian Johnny Smith Tal Farlow Jimmy Raney Grant Green Kenny Burrell George Benson Pat Martino Jim Hall

Each line comes with a brief analysis of why that particular line is interesting from a harmonic, melodic and rhythmic standpoint. Feel free to print this PDF as many times as you like. There are no restrictions as far as that is concerned. I only ask that you do not upload it to the internet. Instead, if you feel that you have a friend who would enjoy this, please ask them to subscribe to my newsletter and I will happily send them a copy of this ebook for them to enjoy. If you want to check out other free online jazz guitar lessons and resources, please visit my homepage at Mattwarnockguitar.com. Thanks again for your support and I hope you enjoy my ebook 10 Essential ii-V-I Licks for Jazz Guitar.!


The 10 Essential Licks

Django Reinhardt Lick Here we find Django doing what he did best, driving home fast-paced lines built with twists, turns and interesting note choices. This line features lower neighbor tones, the F# in bar one and the G# in bar two, as well as chromatic passing tones (taken from the Dominant Bebop Scale), the E in bar two and a cool 3 to 9 Arpeggio in bar three, D-F-A-C. Though he was one of the original jazz cats, Django’s lines were often ahead of their time, and this is a good example of just such a phrase. As good as it sounds in an old-school context, this line is also a great modern sounding lick if we just change the feel slightly from Django to Metheny. A must-know lick for any jazz guitarist.


Charlie Christian Lick Sometimes a player can take a simple line, which uses more roots and fifths than many jazz guitarists are comfortable with, and make it sound great. They do this with their phrasing and rhythmic choices and Charlie Christian was a master of just such an approach to blowing lines. Besides bringing a heightened rhythmic sense to this idea, Christian also spices up the V7 chord by adding in a b9, Bb, as well as mixing small and large intervals in his playing. This intervallic approach helps to grab the listener’s ear, but it also makes it a bit tricky to get under one’s fingers, so practice this line slowly. Isolate the second bar, which has some awkward leaps, and when that is comfortable, put it all together and let her rip!

Johnny Smith Lick Though he’s not as well-remembered these days as other players from the Bop and Hardbop eras, Johnny Smith was one of the most successful and innovative players of his or any generation. Here we have a double-time line that uses passing tones, in the first bar (taken from the Minor Blues Scale), as well as Altered Scale patterns in bar two and an octave leap in bar three. This lick isn’t way out there, but it can be tricky to get the little melodic twists and turns under your fingers. So, take your time, practice each bar separately at a slow tempo, then bring it all together to form the longer phrase.


Tal Farlow Lick One of the things that Tal Farlow became known for was his big hands, allowing him to play stretches that players before and after him couldn’t reach. Though he played large intervals, in both his chords and lines, he was also a master of Bebop Vocabulary, and could play chromatic runs with the best of them. This line uses a ton of different chromatic ideas. We have passing notes in bar one, Eb and A#, a b9, Ab, in bar two as well as another passing note, D#, and one final passing note, F# in bar three finishing up with a lower neighbor, again F#, in bar four. A lot of information in a four bar phrase, and a line that is sure to add some Bebop flare to any solo you play.

Jimmy Raney Lick Jimmy Raney was one of the original Bebop guitarists, and one of the first to translate saxophone and trumpet lines to guitar. In this phrase we find Raney simply outlining the scale for each chord, A Dorian, D Mixolydian and G Ionian. Nothing fancy, but his change of direction, careful use of skips and rhythmic variety when needed really take this line from the realm of a boring scale run and turn it into a memorable phrase from a great player.


Grant Green Lick Few players could groove as hard as Grant Green. His unique time feel allowed him to stand out in the crowded jazz guitar scene of the 1960s, when he developed a name for himself as one of the baddest cats around. In this line we find Grant using passing tones, B in the first bar, and an Altered Scale run in bar two, which resolves very nicely from the 7th of C7 to the 3rd of Fmaj7. Check this phrase out. It’s a great sounding altered based run that also uses space and silence to build energy and interest within the line.

Kenny Burrell Lick Mixing eighth notes, sixteenth notes and featuring a very cool rhythmic motif, bassed on a two note phrase, this line exemplifies the careful and mature approach that has made Kenny Burrell a legend. While many players can easily play some of Kenny’s best lines, getting the right feel and emotional quality to them is another story all together. When learning this line, try listening to some of Kenny’s tunes beforehand. Pay careful attention to his time feel, accents and phrasing. Then, come back to this line and try and imitate those ideas while playing the phrase, getting even closer to imitating one of the greatest players of the 20th and 21st centuries.


George Benson Lick Before moving into the more commercial idiom of Smooth Jazz, George Benson recorded some of the most important jazz guitar records of the ‘60s and ‘70s. One of the things that made him so fun to listen to was his love of the blues and his use of the Blues Scale in almost everything he did. This line features some great minor blues ideas over a II-V-I phrase. The hi-point of this phrase is the double stop moment in bars one and two. By mixing in just one double stop to his line, Benson is highlighting the bluesy phrase that kicks off his idea, while adding a new timbre and dimension to his playing. A great line from a great player.

Pat Martino Lick There are two guys that come to mind whenever I think of players who could play lines in their solos, but hide the fact that they are playing them. The make the solo sound fresh and unique but filled with vocabulary at the same time. Pat Martino is one of these player, and Joe Pass is the other. Here we find Pat injecting a Melodic Minor Scale into the ii chord in bar one, followed by an arpeggio based run in bar two and a pattern-based idea in bar three. In bar four, Martino dives into a Wes Montgomery based idea which brings out the #11 over the D7 chord. All in all this is a great line from a master of Bebop vocabulary.


Jim Hall Lick We’ll finish up our 10 licks with a phrase from one of the most melodic and motivic players in jazz guitar, Jim Hall. Here we find Jim playing an intervallic based motif to start the phrase, which sets the stage for the rest of the line to come. The idea finishes with a Jim Hall trademark, repeated notes, which a lot of players try to avoid, but which Jim makes sound fresh and exciting. Though not known for his lick playing, this is one phrase that every jazz guitarist should definitely check out.

I hope you enjoy these ten licks from some of my favorite players, who were key to developing the modern jazz vocabulary. Please check out Mattwarnockguitar.com for more jazz guitar lessons and resources.

©2011 Matthew Warnock www.mattwarnockguitar.com

10 Two Five One Licks Every Jazz Guitarist Should Know

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